Golf Club Head Composed of Damascene Patterned Metal

ABSTRACT

A golf club head composed of a damascene patterned metal, such as a Damascus steel, is disclosed. The golf club head may be a putter head or an iron-type club head with a majority of the club head body formed of the damascene patterned metal, or a wood-type club head or an iron-type club head with a damascene patterned metal face insert.

CROSS REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The Present Application is a continuation of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 10/904,848, filed on Dec. 1, 2004, which is a divisionalapplication of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/248,067, which wasfiled on Dec. 13, 2002, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,878,074, which is acontinuation-in-part application of U.S. Provisional Application No.60/343,865, which was filed on Dec. 26, 2001, now abandoned.

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

Not Applicable

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a golf club head composed of adamascene patterned metal.

2. Description of the Related Art

Damascus steel is a 12.sup.th Century metallurgical technique thattraditionally has been used to make knives, daggers, swords and scimitarblades. There are two different types of Damascus steel, wootz Damascusand pattern-welded Damascus, both of which have a unique and distinctivepattern of light and dark-colored areas throughout the steel. WootzDamascus, the original Damascus, was made of wootz steel found in India.Wootz steel is a relatively high purity iron steel with about 1.5%carbon and trace amounts of impurities, such as silicon (0.04%),manganese (0.06%), phosphorus (0.1%) and sulfur (0.02%). When wootzsteel is forged, cementite particles precipitate and align into bands orsheets. A distinctive pattern of white or light-colored cementite bandsagainst a nearly black steel matrix is created when the forged wootzsteel is polished and etched in acid to review the sculpted lines.

The distinctive damascene pattern of pattern welded Damascus steel comesfrom alternating sheets of high and low-carbon steels. The differentsheets of steel are repeatedly drawn, folded and forge welded together.The forge welded steel may then be polished and etched to enhance thecontrast between the two steels.

These days, the terms Damascus and damascene are not just limited tosteel, but describe other materials that have a distinctive patternthroughout the material.

Golf club heads are typically made of metals, such as steels, titanium,titanium alloys, and other materials, including composites. The metalstraditionally used in golf club heads are homogeneous and have nodiscernable pattern either on the surface of or through the metal. Golfclubs with club heads that have unique patterns in their metal mayappeal to consumers. Thus, there is a need for an improved golf clubhead made of a damascene patterned metal.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is a golf club head made of a damascene patternedmetal The golf club head may be a putter head or an iron-type club headwith a majority of the club head body formed of the damascene patternedmetal, or a wood-type club head or an iron-type club head with adamascene patterned metal face insert.

Having briefly described the present invention, the above and furtherobjects, features and advantages thereof will be recognized by thoseskilled in the pertinent art from the following detailed description ofthe invention when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a top plan view of a putter head composed of a damascenepatterned metal in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a bottom view of the putter head of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a front view of the putter head of FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a toe end view of the putter head of FIG. 1.

FIG. 5 is a heel end view of the putter head of FIG. 1.

FIG. 6 is a graph of the magnitude versus frequency for three differentputters.

FIG. 7 is a front perspective view of an iron-type club head composed ofa damascene patterned metal in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a back perspective view of the iron-type club head of FIG. 7.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of a wood-type club head (in phantom lines)with a face insert composed of a damascene patterned metal in accordancewith the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of a billet of a damascene patternedmetal.

FIG. 11 is a flow chart illustrating a method for preparing a damascenemetal and manufacturing a golf club head part.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

FIGS. 1-5 illustrate a putter head 200 composed of a damascene patternedmetal in accordance with the present invention. The putter head 200 hasa body that includes a toe side 201, a heel side 202, a front or face203, a rear 204, a sole 205 and a crown or top 206. The face 203illustrates the distinctive pattern of the damascene patterned metalwith area 211 and area 212 composed of different materials. Thedamascene patterned metal used to make the putter head 200 is preferablycomposed of stainless steel 304L and stainless steel 316L. The putterhead 200 may also be composed of Damascus steel. One of ordinary skillin the art will appreciate that other steel compositions and even othermetals may also be used. For example, the damascene patterned metal maybe composed of two different types of titanium: an alpha titanium, suchas pure titanium; and a metastable beta titanium alloy, such as a15-3-3-3, 13-11-3 or beta-C titanium alloy. In addition, other suitablemetals, such as nickel and copper, may be combined to produce thedamascene patterned metal.

The damascene patterned metal provides the putter head 200 with improvedfeel. FIG. 6 is a chart illustrating the difference between two putterscomposed of damascene patterned steel D1 and D2 and a putter composed ofregular stainless steel R. Based on frequency analysis, the damascenepatterned steel putters D1 and D2 had higher peaks in amplitude and ahigher frequency. This difference in frequency was clearly audible. Itis believed that the higher the frequency of a putter, the better theputter feels during a putt. It is believed that the modulus of thematerial influences the frequency.

In a putter head the damascene patterned metal may also be used to heeland toe weight the putter head 200 by placing more of the heavier anddenser material at the toe and heel ends of the putter head. This isaccomplished by initially locating these heavier and denser materials indefined areas within a billet 50 (FIG. 9) before forging and/ormachining the billet 50 into the shape of a putter head body.

As illustrated in FIG. 1, the damascene patterned metal may also be usedto provide alignment features for a putter head 200. The pattern formedin the damascene patterned metal may be used in conjunction with or inlieu of an additional alignment feature 215 on the top 206 of the putterhead 200. Further, softer metals, such as nickel or copper, may be usedin the area of the striking face in order to yield a softer feel. Insuch an embodiment for a soft feeling face, the layers of the laminatedamascene patterned metal are vertical layers that alternate from theface 203 to the rear 204, as opposed to varying from the toe 201 to theheel 202 as shown in FIG. 3.

FIGS. 7 and 8 illustrate an iron-type club head 300 composed of adamascene patterned metal in accordance with the present invention. Theiron-type club head 300 has a body that includes a toe side 301, a heelside 302, a front or face 303, a rear 304, a sole 305 and a top 306. Thefront face 303 provides a ball-striking surface with a plurality ofscorelines 307. The rear 304 illustrates the distinctive pattern of thedamascene patterned metal with area 311 and area 312 composed ofdifferent materials. The iron-type club head 300 may have an improvedfeel over other iron-type club heads.

The damascene patterned metal may also be used to form a portion of agolf club head, such as a face insert for an iron-type or wood-type clubhead. FIG. 9 illustrates a wood-type golf club head 400 with a faceinsert 403 composed of a damascene patterned metal. A generaldescription of a wood-type club head with a face insert is disclosed inU.S. Pat. No. 6,364,739, filed on Dec. 30, 1999 and issued on Apr. 2,2002, for a Golf Club Head, U.S. Pat. No. 6,348,015, filed on Mar. 14,2000 and issued on Feb. 19, 2002 for a Golf Club Head Having a StrikingFace with Improved Efficiency, and U.S. Pat. No. 6,338,683, filed onDec. 30, 1999 and issued on Jan. 15, 2002 for a Striking Plate for aGolf Club Head, all of which are hereby incorporated by reference intheir entirety. The wood-type golf club head 400 has a body 401 with anopening 402 formed in a front face thereof. The face insert 403 coversthe opening 402. The face insert 403 is composed of a damascenepatterned metal, such as Damascus steel or the stainless steel 304L andstainless steel 316L composite, which provides improved strength anddeflection characteristics.

The bodies of the putter head 200 and iron-type club head 300 and theface insert for an iron-type or wood type club head 400 are formed froma billet 50 or cylindrical bar (not shown) of damascene patterned metal.As will be described in greater detail below, the billet 50 or bar ofthe damascene patterned metal is preferably forged into a rough shape ofthe club head part and then machined to the final dimensions andpolished.

FIG. 11 is a flow chart of illustrating the a method 100 for preparing aclub head composed of a damascene patterned metal. The method 100 beginsat step 102 with the preparation of a bulk material. The bulk materialmay be prepared by any one of the following procedures: stackingcorrugated sheets of different materials at block 102 a; stacking flatsheets of different materials at block 102 b; or braiding ropes usingwires of different materials at block 102 c. Two or more differentmaterials may be stacked or braided to form the bulk material.

FIG. 10 is an illustration of a billet 50 of bulk material. The billet50 illustrated has five layers 51-55, however, a billet may includegreater than or fewer than five layers. Each layer of the billet 50 iscomposed of a material that is different from that of adjacent layers.The billet 50 may be include as few as two different layers of material,alternately stacked together, or have all five layers 51-55 of differentmaterials. One preferred billet for making golf club heads is adamascene patterned steel that includes alternating layers of stainlesssteel 304L and stainless steel 316L. Another such billet is a damascenepatterned titanium that include layers of an alpha titanium, such aspure titanium, and layers of a metastable beta titanium, such as a15-3-3-3, 13-11-3 or beta-C titanium alloy. Metals such as nickel,copper, brass, cobalt, zirconium and others may also be used. Thethicknesses of the layers of materials may vary depending on the desiredamount of each material.

At block 106 the materials are consolidated to provide a strong bondbetween the different metal layers. The bonding may be enhanced if thereis a chemical reaction between the various components. Two differentprocesses that may be used to consolidate the different layers ofmaterial in the billet include vacuum hot pressing and diffusion bondingat block 106 a and explosive welding at block 106 b.

In the vacuum hot pressing and diffusion bonding step 106 a, the bulkmaterial, which was prepared by any one of steps 102 a-102 c, is heatedto an elevated temperature under pressure. Bonding may be significantlyenhanced if one of the materials is heated to its melting point andliquefies. Solid state diffusion is also possible, however, the it maybe necessary to maintain the bulk material at the elevated temperaturefor a longer period of time. Mechanical adhesion may not work as well ifthe materials have very different coefficients of thermal expansion.

The other process for consolidating the materials is explosive welding,block 106 b. This process involves bonding the metals using pressure ora shock wave. An explosive charge is ignited behind the bulk materialsto generate the pressure needed to bond, or explosively weld, thematerials. The large pressure forces the metal atoms of adjacentmaterials together to form a metallurgical bond. The interface betweenthe different layers of metal is very distinct, and there appears to beno evidence of melting of the metals. Explosive welding is an effectiveway of joining dissimilar materials, such as steel, copper and brass, orsteel and titanium, however, it is limited in its ability to join highstrength materials.

After the billet 50 is consolidated, either by vacuum hot pressing orexplosive welding, the billet 50 is further processed to create uniquepatterns. The billet 50 may be further processed by extrusion at step108 a, rolling at step 108 b, or twisting at step 108 c, to distort thelaminar structure and diffuse the layers. These processes producevarious patterns, such as ladder, twist, and rose patterns, in theresulting billet or cylindrical bar.

Yet another possibility for consolidating different metals includesadding different amounts of two metals that have extensive solubility inthe liquid state but very limited solubility in the solid state. Whenthe composition is solidified, the larger volume first component is in acontinuous phase, while the second component remains in discreteglobules. The composition is further deformed, and the second componentthat was in discrete globules is distorted by the surrounding largervolume first component. Thus, for example, if the solidified compositionin billet form were to be extruded into a rod, the second componentwould be extended as rods in the larger volume component. If thesolidified composition in billet form were rolled into sheets, thesecond component would appear as discs embedded in the larger component.Thus, unique patterns could be achieved for each golf club head body orface insert.

At step 110 the billet 50 is then forged into a rough shape of a golfclub head part. As discussed above, the part may be the body of a putterhead or iron-type club head or a face insert for an iron-type club heador wood-type club head. Forging further alters the pattern in the billet50 to obtain a golf club head part with a unique pattern. Thus, no twogolf club heads will have the identical damascene pattern in the metal.

At step 112 the piece that was forged at step 100 into the rough shapeof golf club head part is then machined to its precise dimensions.Alternatively, the forging step 110 may be skipped altogether, and thebillet machined directly to form the final golf club head part. Eitherprocedure creates a golf club head or face insert that is unique, sincethe pattern resulting in each billet is different.

At step 114 the final club head part is polished to provide the properfinish.

At step 116, the polished club head part may then be etched with asuitable acid to accentuate the detail of the damascene pattern in themetal.

From the foregoing it is believed that those skilled in the pertinentart will recognize the meritorious advancement of this invention andwill readily understand that while the present invention has beendescribed in association with a preferred embodiment thereof, and otherembodiments illustrated in the accompanying drawings, numerous changes,modifications and substitutions of equivalents may be made thereinwithout departing from the spirit and scope of this invention which isintended to be unlimited by the foregoing except as may appear in thefollowing appended claims. Therefore, the embodiments of the inventionin which an exclusive property or privilege is claimed are defined inthe following appended claims.

1. An iron-type golf club head comprising: a body composed of adamascene patterned metal wherein the damascene patterned metalcomprises a first metal and a second metal, the first metal havingproperties different than the second metal, and the damascene patternedmetal comprising a plurality of alternating vertical layers of the firstmetal and the second metal, each of the plurality of alternatingvertical layers extending from a sole of the iron-type golf club head toa top of the iron-type golf club head.
 2. The iron-type golf club headaccording to claim 1 wherein the damascene patterned metal is composedof stainless steel 304L and stainless steel 316L.
 3. The iron-type golfclub head according to claim 1 wherein the damascene patterned metal iscomposed of an alpha titanium and a metastable beta titanium.
 4. Theiron-type golf club head according to claim 1 wherein the damascenepatterned metal is composed of copper and nickel.
 5. The iron-type golfclub head according to claim 1 further comprising a front face with aplurality of scorelines.
 6. An iron-type golf club head comprising: abody composed of a damascene patterned metal wherein the damascenepatterned metal comprises a stainless steel 304L and a stainless steel316L, the damascene patterned metal comprising a plurality ofalternating vertical layers of the stainless steel 304L and thestainless steel 316L, each of the plurality of alternating verticallayers extending from a sole of the iron-type golf club head to a top ofthe iron-type golf club head.
 7. The iron-type golf club head accordingto claim 6 further comprising a front face with a plurality ofscorelines.
 8. An iron-type golf club head comprising: a body composedof a damascene patterned metal wherein the damascene patterned metalcomprises a pure titanium and a beta-C-titanium, the damascene patternedmetal comprising a plurality of alternating vertical layers of the puretitanium and the beta-C-titanium, each of the plurality of alternatingvertical layers extending from a sole of the iron-type golf club head toa top of the iron-type golf club head.
 9. The iron-type golf club headaccording to claim 8 further comprising a front face with a plurality ofscorelines.